


peace comes dropping slow

by helsinkibaby



Series: peace comes dropping slow [1]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/M, Het, Rare Pairings, Romance, canon level violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-10
Updated: 2020-05-19
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:08:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 21,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24094843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/helsinkibaby/pseuds/helsinkibaby
Summary: In which Steve McGarrett falls in love, loses his mom, is noble and stupid, breaks two hearts, leaves Hawaii and comes back.A.K.A a Steve/Noelani centric season 10 AU that I never intended to write and no-one asked for yet here we are.
Relationships: Noelani Cunha/Steve McGarrett
Series: peace comes dropping slow [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1988524
Comments: 24
Kudos: 38





	1. first kiss

**Author's Note:**

> This was never intended to be a long fic. But I did a bingo card for 1 million words and one fic led into another and I decided to say screw it and do a multi chapter fic rather than several one shot fics in a series.
> 
> Title comes from “The Lake Isle of Inisfree” by WB Yeats

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt : first kiss
> 
> Post ep for 9.22

Steve didn’t know how long they sat in that corridor, Noelani’s head on his shoulder, his arm wrapped around her. He did notice that, gradually, her trembling stopped, her breathing evening out to something approaching normal. He was listening to her breathing so closely in fact that he noticed when it hitched slightly, then again when she drew in a deep breath. 

She lifted her head slightly, just enough so she could look up at him. “Thank you for staying,” she said quietly. 

Steve shrugged the shoulder she wasn’t leaning on. “It’s no problem,” he said and strangely enough, he had to admit that their conversation hadn’t just been a comfort to her. It had been the first time he’d talked to someone about losing Joe and he felt lighter for it, almost if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. 

He’d never realised Noelani was so easy to talk to. 

“I should go home,” she said but she showed no real inclination towards movement and her tone matched. 

“I’ve got a better idea,” he heard himself saying. “How about we go get pancakes? Wailana Coffee House, best on the island.” 

She frowned, giving him a strange look but it shifted to more like mortified when her stomach gurgled loudly. “Yeah, I bet those kidnappers didn’t exactly feed you properly,” he said, keeping his arm around her as they stood together. “Come on... I’ll drive.” 

Traffic to the coffee house was pretty light and he found a parking spot easily, thanking his lucky stars when there was no queue outside. The hostess seated them straight away and neither of them needed to look at the menu, each ordering a stack of pancakes. When both of them had a cup of coffee in front of them, Steve looked at her seriously. “So... you okay? Tell me the truth.” Noelani closed her eyes and shuddered, as if she was replaying the whole day in her mind. “Hey.” Steve reached across the table, his fingers touching the back of her hand gently. “It’s over. You’re safe.” 

Her dark eyes opened and she tried to smile but it was a trembling one. “I guess it’s all just hitting me now,” she said. “Is that normal?” 

“Completely normal.” Steve leaned in. “You’ve been through a trauma, it’s gonna take some time for you to deal with it. You can’t expect to bounce right back like nothing happened.” 

Noelani cocked an eyebrow. “You do.” 

Steve twisted his lips. It didn’t always feel like that. “SEAL training does that.” He shrugged. “And when that doesn’t work, I hit the gun range... go for a run, or a swim, take Eddie for a hike...” Noelani’s smile brightened at the mention of the dog’s name and an idea came to Steve, knowing that Eddie adored Noelani. “You want to take him some day, I’m sure he’d love that.” Something else struck him. “You and Manti could bring him out again.” 

Just like that, it was as if shutters fell over Noelani’s face and Steve wondered what he had said. "No." She pursed her lips. "We split up a couple of months ago."

Steve was surprised at that, both at the fact that they’d split and that she’d kept it quiet. Five-O gossip usually spread much more quickly than that. "I'm sorry to hear that." Not that Steve had had much dealings with Manti but he'd seemed like a nice enough guy. And Eddie hadn't wanted to run him off, so that had to count for something, right? 

"Yeah." Except from Noelani's flat voice, it didn't sound like she agreed. "Well, that's what happens when I thought things were fine between us, and he thought monogamy was a type of wood."

Unfortunately, Steve had just taken a sip of coffee when she said that and the line took him completely by surprise so, combined with her deadpan delivery, he almost spit out the entire mouthful. He coughed and spluttered, grabbed some napkins from the dispenser on the table and chuckled as he dabbed at his mouth. "Geez, Noelani, give a guy some warning next time..." But she was smiling, actually giggling, looking lighter than she'd looked all day and he suddenly found himself thinking that embarrassing himself wasn't the worst thing in the world if it got her to look like that. "Seriously," he continued, "you know coffee burns when it comes out your nose?" 

"Don't worry." Again, there was that deadpan tone, even as her eyes danced. "I'm a doctor. I'll save you." 

"Yeah, a doctor," he mock grumbled. "What about your Hippocratic Oath, do no harm?" He crumpled up the napkins, left them on the side of the table and picked up his mug again, holding it up in question. "Am I safe? Are you sure?" 

"I promise. Scout's honour." She held up her hand in a fairly passable salute. 

Steve narrowed his eyes. "You were never a Boy Scout."

"No." Noelani shook her head and looked down with another little giggle and Steve leaned back in his seat, taking a sip of his coffee and regarding her thoughtfully. 

"So... you got one of those goons to bring you to the bathroom and attacked him with a fire extinguisher?" 

She tilted her head. "And a scalpel."

"Oh... and a scalpel, I see. Well, that just makes all the difference in the world." He was teasing her but he was impressed too. "Pretty gutsy."

Noelani shrugged but she looked pleased. "What can I say, I've been hanging around Five-O too long. You guys are rubbing off on me."

"You gonna be looking for a badge too?" Steve raised an eyebrow. "Just because Jerry got one..."

"Oh no." Noelani held up a hand and laughed softly. "I like my job just fine, thank you." 

"We like having you." The words were out before he could stop them. She looked surprised at first, then happy, a flush of pink spreading across her cheeks. 

"Thank you." Her voice was quiet and she looked down, fingers playing with the handle of her coffee cup. 

Even to his own ears, his voice was low when he replied, "Any time," and he frowned as he saw her shiver. "You cold?"

Her cheeks flushed darker and her smile didn't quite reach her eyes. "Just a draught." 

He hadn't felt anything but before he could say that, the waitress arrived with their pancakes and Noelani reached for hers the second she could. "Oh my God, I didn't even realise how hungry I was until right now." 

"You've had a long day." Steve couldn't help but notice the dark shadows under her eyes that the stress of the day couldn't entirely be blamed for. "Dig in." 

They ate mostly in silence and by the time they were finished, the circles under Noelani's eyes were even darker than before. "You look like you're about to fall asleep on me," Steve said as he waved for the check, keeping his voice light. 

Noelani groaned, resting her elbows on the table and grinding the heels of her hands into her eyes. "I'm sorry-" she began but Steve shut that down fast. 

"Hey, long day, remember?" He stood up, threw some bills down on the table that would more than cover the cost. He heard twin voices in the back of his head that sounded very like Danny and Lou giving him hell about finally picking up the check for something but he resolutely ignored them. "C'mon." He slung an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close against him, letting her lean into him. "Let's get you home." 

It wasn't that long a drive to Noelani's house but by the time Steve pulled up outside, she was sound asleep, head resting against the passenger seat window, her breathing deep and even. Steve waited for a minute after he cut the engine, hoping she'd wake up on her own but when she showed no signs of doing so, he started to reach out, then, thinking of the day she'd had, thought better of it. "Hey... Sleeping Beauty." He spoke quietly, only realising how the words sounded when he heard them aloud but not being able to find it in him to regret saying them. When she shifted slightly, a little whimper leaving her throat, he reached out to gently lay a hand on her shoulder. "Noelani... we're home." 

Her head rolled in his direction, her cheek nudging his hand but he didn't move it. Instead he squeezed her shoulder, watching as her eyelids fluttered and opened. There was another whimper before her hand moved to cover her eyes. "Steve?"

"Yeah, I'm here. You take your time... I'm not in any hurry." He was dimly aware that his fingers were now making small circles against her shoulder, just like he was dimly aware that he should stop doing that. 

He just didn't want to. 

It only took a couple of minutes for her eyes to open fully and meet his, a smile coming to her lips that was almost embarrassed. She opened her mouth but he beat her to it. "Don't say sorry," he ordered with a grin and the "almost" fled from her smile. "It's the adrenaline leaving your system... you'll probably sleep most of the day tomorrow. And make sure you do." The last was added as an order with no grin attached and she nodded. 

"Oh, I will." She gave him a grin then looked out the window, her teeth catching in her bottom lip as she stared at her house. She drew in a deep breath that shook when she exhaled and Steve took a lucky guess. 

"You want me to go in with you? Take a look around?" Because she'd never told him where she was grabbed but he couldn't imagine she was eager to walk into an empty house after all she'd been through that day. 

Her head snapped around to him and the look of relief couldn't be mistaken but she still tried. "You don't have to-"

He was already pulling the key out of the ignition. "Let's go." 

When he saw how her hand shook as she lifted the key to the lock, he was glad he'd made the offer and he walked through every room of the house with her, turned on every light, checked every window and every door, every nook and every cranny where someone might be hiding. By the time they were back in her living room again, she looked considerably more at ease. 

Still, he found himself asking, "You're sure you're gonna be okay?" She nodded but he kept going. "I can crash on your couch if you want; it's not a problem..."

Noelani shook her head at that, her cheeks red. "No." It was a firm no, one that he knew she wasn't going to take back. "Steve, you've done so much this evening... thank you."

"Hey it's no problem. Any time."

Noelani wrinkled her nose at that. "No offense, but I really hope not." 

Considering what she'd been through, he laughed at that before stepping into her, wrapping her in his arms and resting his chin on the top of her head. After a second of hesitation, he felt her arms slide around his waist, felt her cheek press against his chest and he closed his eyes, tightening his grip ever so slightly. 

"You need anything, you call me, you got that?" He didn't lift his head, didn't loosen his grip, and neither did she. 

Eventually, they both moved at the same time, him pulling his head back to look down at her, her lifting her head to look up at him. Her eyes were bright and one of his hands moved without him being aware of it, running his knuckles along her cheek. Her eyes fluttered shut and her lips opened slightly and slowly, ever so slowly in case he was getting this very, very wrong, Steve leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. 

She responded by lifting herself up on her tiptoes, opening her mouth to his, and her fingernails scraped lightly against his shirt as her hands pulled him closer. He smiled into the kiss, splaying one hand low on her back, the other cupping the back of her head, bringing their two bodies as close as he could. 

He didn't know how long they stood there and he only broke the kiss because breathing was becoming an issue. Resting his forehead against hers, he gulped in greedy breaths, noting she was doing likewise, that her pupils were blown wide, that she was trembling against him. "Wow," she breathed and he grinned, he couldn't help it. "And I thought being held hostage and made to perform surgery was as weird as my day was going to get." That made him blink and when she saw his reaction, she closed her eyes, like she hadn't meant to say that out loud. Her next words confirmed that. "Shit. I should not be allowed to speak."

Fortunately, he had the exact response. "Well, why don't we see what we can do about that?" he asked, drawing her back for a second kiss that was longer and sweeter than the first. 

The next time he pulled back, it was with another quick kiss to her lips, then one to her nose. "Good night, Noelani," he whispered and she quickly covered up a look of disappointment. "Just so you know?" he told her, with another kiss to her cheek. "The only reason I'm leaving is because you're exhausted." A kiss to her other cheek. "And you need your rest." A kiss to her forehead. "And if I stay..."

She kissed him then, full of promise and his head was spinning when she pulled back. "We’re not gonna sleep." Her eyes sparkled as she finished his thoughts. "Good night, Steve." Another one of those searing kisses and he had to leave quickly before he forgot he was a gentleman.

"Lock up after me," he ordered and she gave him another one of those cute little not-Boy-Scout salutes of hers as she closed the door. He still stood on the front porch until he heard the lock snick into place and when he got into his truck, he sat there until the house was in darkness.

Only then did he drive home, smiling the whole way.


	2. date night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt : date night

“So, how come you’re in such a good mood today?” 

Danny asked the question as they were on their way back to headquarters after interviewing a witness to the case that had just dropped on them that morning. He said it like he always said it, leaning back in his seat, his eyes narrowed on Steve, hands waving like he was conducting a symphony. Steve didn’t even have to take his eyes off the road to know that, but he did anyway, just for a second, because it was always nice to see that he was right. Plus, taking his eyes off the road for even a second often caused Danny’s blood pressure to rise and start him failing against Steve’s maniacal driving and how they were bound to meet a fiery death in a car wreck one day, which in turn distracted him from his initial question. So that little glance off the road served a truly greater purpose. 

Except today, Steve had other things to think about. “I don’t know what you mean,” he said, making a face and shaking his head. “My mood is no different to any other day.” 

“Oh it’s not?”

“No, it’s not.”

“Let me tell you, my friend, not only is your mood different today, it’s lighter. It’s positively jovial is what it is-”

“Jovial? That’s what I am now?” 

“It is a word, okay, it is a word which means cheerful and friendly, which is what I was when Grace finally stopped asking me to test her on word study and is definitely what you are today.” The hands were going again, in particular his left arm, the one closest to Steve. “Rumour has it that there was even a smile involved.” 

Steve chuckled at that, flexed his hands on the steering wheel but didn’t otherwise say anything. 

“So I’m getting the silent treatment now? Is that it?”

Steve shrugged. “I don’t know what to tell you, man.” He pressed his lips together but he couldn’t stop the twitch as a grin did indeed try to break through. He didn’t expect Danny to miss it - the other man was too good a detective for that, even if Steve would never, ever say that to him - and he didn’t, leaning in a little closer as if to check the evidence of his own eyes.

“That is definitely a twitch.” Danny sounded like he didn’t know whether to be annoyed or curious but he definitely fell towards the latter. “You know, if I didn't know better, I'd say that's a just got laid face you've got going on there."

Steve had been working with Danny for almost nine years now; he knew a fishing expedition when he heard one. "Lucky you know better then," he said mildly. He wasn't going to tell Danny anything else; not that there was much to tell, after all, one kiss did not a relationship make. But Steve had a good feeling about this, was feeling hopeful in a way he hadn't felt in a very long time and when he thought of Noelani, thought of how they'd left things the previous evening, he couldn't help it. 

He wanted to smile. 

"There!" Danny's exclamation was so loud that only for Steve's training and reflexes, he would have driven the car off the road. "You're trying not to smile. I mentioned a woman and you're trying not to smile. Did you go out last night and meet someone?"

Steve pressed his lips together, concentrating on the road. "No comment."

"Which is a comment all by itself." Danny sounded delighted and no way was Steve risking a look at him, not when he could so easily imagine the grin that was sure to be on his face. "You got yourself a girlfriend."

It was the nearest thing to a singsong Steve could imagine. "You are a sixteen year old girl right now, you know that? A sixteen year old girl." 

Danny didn't say anything and when Steve glanced over at him, yep, there was the grin that he knew he'd see. 

He couldn't help it. 

He grinned right back. 

The rest of the car ride passed in silence, thoughtful from Steve, smug from Danny. Arriving at headquarters, the rest of the team were already there standing around the table, silence falling when Steve and Danny walked in. Which, after his conversation with Danny, Steve found a little suspicious. Reports of findings were exchanged but they were no nearer to working down a workable theory and maybe Steve was a little paranoid but he felt sure the rest of his team were exchanging glances behind his back. Plus Danny was bobbing up and down with an insufferable smile on his face, all "I know something you don't know" and Steve figured he'd better leave him spread the good news before he actually exploded. 

Heading into his office, ostensibly to do some paperwork, he did sit down, did open a file. But the words weren't holding his attention and he couldn't concentrate, a state most unlike him. Checking the clock he realised they were well into the afternoon - surely she couldn't still be sleeping, right? Giving into temptation, he reached for his cell phone, scrolled through until he found the number he was looking for and pressed dial. Then, as it was ringing, he angled his chair away from the windows, just in case. 

“Hello?” 

Noelani’s voice sounded sleepy and Steve frowned as he glanced at his watch, double checking the time. “Hey, it’s me. Did I wake you?” 

There was a huff of breath, then a pause. “I was awake,” she told him. “I even got up and had breakfast. Then I sat down on the couch and now here I am.” Another pause and this time he could hear her yawn. “But I was ordered to sleep today, so...” 

He could hear the smile in her voice and, knowing that he was the one who’d given her the order, he returned it. “You were kidnapped and held hostage yesterday,” he reminded her and she snickered. 

“I’m not likely to forget.” 

“All I’m saying is, you need to take some time to recover. Whoever gave you that order, he sounds pretty smart.” 

“He is.” He could picture her smiling, the same way she’d smiled at the Wailana Coffee House the previous evening, the same way she’d smiled later on as he’d kissed her for the first time. Maybe her mind had gone to the same place because she added, “He’s a pretty good kisser too.” 

“Oh, is that so?” Steve might have been a little out of practice -okay, fine, a lot out of practice - but even he couldn’t mistake that green light. “Then I wouldn’t be out of line if I asked you out to dinner tonight? Unless you’re taking this sleeping order really seriously that is.” 

She made a little humming noise, like she was actually thinking about it. “I think I can fit you in,” she said after a moment and Steve didn’t try to hide the smile that spread across his face, didn’t bother to check if anyone was looking in at him. For the first time in a long time, he had a first date and he was feeling good about it. 

“I’ll pick you up at eight?” 

If he knew anything about Noelani, the smile he heard in her voice matched the one he was wearing. “I’ll see you then.” 

The rest of the day passed slowly, like the approach of Christmas when you're a kid and the closer to evening it got, the more Steve was convinced that they were going to get a late break on the case and that he was going to have to cancel on Noelani. Whatever higher power was up there must have figured that they owed him one, however, because he was able to walk out of the Palace at a decent hour, head home and shower before changing and arriving to pick up Noelani right on time. 

"Wow." It mightn't have been the most eloquent of ways to greet your date for the night but from the way Noelani smiled, she didn't seem to mind. "You look great." 

She was wearing a red dress that fell to her knees, some sort of printed pattern on it with a tie on the waist. Instead of the ponytail she usually wore, her hair was loose and curled, making his fingers itch with desire. He'd seen her dressed up before, of course, there had been plenty of team outings over the years. But it was different, he thought, when she'd made the effort specifically for him. And it was different when her eyes sparkled as she looked him up and down, taking in his dark slacks, his blue button down shirt. "You don't look so bad yourself," she said, stepping outside and closing the door behind her. "I was worried I might be overdressed."

"What, you thought I'd be taking you to Kamekona's?" he quipped, slipping his hand into hers for the walk down the path. "I think we can do better than that." 

Her smile made him think about pulling her close and finishing what they’d started the previous night. "I promise not to tell him you said that." 

They made small talk on the drive over, him telling her about his day and the latest case they'd caught, asking her how she was feeling while trying not to come across too overprotective. When they were sitting down in the restaurant, a quiet little out of the way place that was one of his favourites, candlelight glinting across her skin, when their meals were ordered and they each had a glass of wine, he raised his, held it out to her. "Cheers," he said simply and she beamed as she clinked her glass against his. 

"Cheers." 

He took a sip of the wine before laying back down the glass and leaning in. "So... I should probably warn you..." he began and that was as far as he got before she chuckled lightly. 

"Is this where you tell me that you might get a call and have to disappear suddenly?" He must have looked surprised because she gave him a look that was way too reminiscent of a pissed off Danny for comfort. "I'm the medical examiner, Steve," she reminded him. "You ever notice that most of the crime scenes you're at, I'm there too?" 

He had to give her that one. However, it wasn't what he'd been about to say. "I actually was not going to give you the whole 'my personal life often takes second place to my job' speech," he told her. "It is job related though, mostly to do with the team. I was going to say, you might have noticed that they're a little... ah..."

"Pack of busybodies?" she guessed and it surprised a laugh out of him. 

"I was going to say nosy," he admits. "But that works too." His phone buzzed in his pocket, a text message and he took it out and looked at it, hoping that it wasn't work. It wasn't, but it was Danny. "Case in point." He held up the phone, showing her the message. "Danny apparently thought that I was in a jovial mood today and has decided that it's something to do with a woman." Which of course, it was, but he didn't need to tell her that. And the phrase “just got laid face” was never going to cross his lips. 

"I know." There was a smile on her face that he couldn't quite decipher and since he'd never met a mystery he didn't want to solve, he leaned in closer. 

"You know? What do you know?" 

"That your team are busybodies and that they think you've got a new girlfriend." She pulled her own cell phone out of her purse, tapped a few buttons and then read from the screen, "'Boss in a weirdly good mood... might get out of here early tonight. Margaritas?' Then, an hour later, 'According to Danny, boss's good mood is because of a woman. Stand by for details.' And my personal favourite, 'He's on the phone and he's smiling, who knew he had that many teeth?'" She was just barely holding back her laughter and he shook his head, rubbing his hand over his chin. 

"Can I fire Tani for that?" he asked and that did it for her keeping back her laughter. 

"I'm going to go with no on that one," she told him, just as his phone buzzed again. "But I'm going to guess that's not the only message you'll get tonight."

Steve checked his phone again. "This one's from Lou." He read it, shook his head. "He wants to know if I feel like grabbing a beer. He has literally not done that in months." 

"So are you going to text him back?"

Steve knew if he didn't, his phone would never stop. "No thanks," he texted, speaking as he typed. "Have plans." He pressed send, then looked up at Noelani and had a thought and resumed typing. "And she's way prettier than you and Danny." 

Noelani laughed at that as he put the phone down on the table, a good deal less gently than he might have. "Now there's a compliment." 

"Well, I meant it." He reached across the table, covered her hand with his. "But yeah... I'm probably going to get a lot of that. And I could have told Danny it was you, but I just... I didn't think I should, not without talking to you about it. I mean... you had a very traumatic day yesterday, maybe what happened was a reaction to that... which I would understand, I mean, I'm hoping it's not, but if it was..."

"Steve." Her tone was firm but she was still smiling. He took that as a good thing. "I did not get all dressed up tonight as a reaction to trauma." She turned her hand under his, lacing their fingers together. "And I didn't kiss you last night because of it either."

"Technically I kissed you." He realised he was sounding like Danny and pressed his lips together. "That's not the point." 

"The point is, I like you." Her cheeks were a little darker than could reasonably be accounted for by makeup. "And not just because you rescued me from a hostage situation." His fingers tightened around hers. "And if dating you means dating the team... then I'm okay with that."

He found himself grinning. "You say that now... wait til you get a load of Danny in full flow. You might change your mind." 

“Oh I’ve seen him.” Once again he was reminded that Noelani knew the team almost as well as he did. “And sure, it’s an issue...” Her eyes glittered as she leaned in closer. “But I’m sure you’ll make it worth my while.” Steve couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows at that and she looked suddenly worried. “Is that too much for a first date?” 

Steve wrinkled his nose, pretending to think. “Actually, this is more like our second date,” he said. “And I like the way you think.” 

Unlike most of his first or even second dates, the night passed quickly. The food was delicious, the conversation flowing non-stop, full of smiles and laughter. There was hand holding across the table, foot tapping under the table and every so often when Noelani moved her head, her hair would shift, exposing the column of her neck which, for some reason, was driving Steve to distraction. 

They walked out of the restaurant hand in hand and out of habit Steve checked his phone before he started the truck. What he saw there made him shake his head. “How many messages from Danny?” Noelani asked with a smile. 

“After ignoring the first dozen, he should know to take the hint, right?” Steve asked and her laughter was music to his ears. 

Unlike the previous night, she didn’t fall asleep on him. He did however walk her to her front door, stepping up behind her as she slid the key into the lock. Resting one hand lightly on her hip, he used the other to sweep her hair back off her neck before leaning down and pressing a kiss to the junction where her neck met her shoulder. She stilled, shivered and he was suddenly reminded of her shiver in the diner the previous night. “Another draught?” 

He didn’t need to look at her to know she was biting her lip. “No.” Her voice was soft, husky, nothing like the gasp she let out when his lips found her neck again. 

“I’ve been wanting to do that all night,” he told her honestly and she turned the key in the lock, turned herself in his arms and smiled up at him. 

“Why do you think I wore my hair like this?” Her hands played with buttons of his shirt as he lowered his lips to hers and after that, teasing was very, very far from either of their minds. 

He’d promised her the previous evening that if he’d gone in, neither of them would have got any rest. He made good on his promise that night and it was well into the early hours of the morning before either of them fell asleep. He was still awake at sunrise the next morning, years of training rendering it habit, no matter how little sleep he’d had, so he made a virtue out of a necessity, kissing his way down her body to wake her up and while she might have had some initial complaints about being woken up so early, she soon changed her tune. 

It was hard to leave her there, already falling back asleep but after a long kiss goodbye, he was making his way back to his house, fighting back a groan when he pulled up outside next to Danny’s black Camaro. 

“Well, well, well, look who’s doing the walk of shame.” Danny’s lips were curled up in a smile as he waved his coffee cup in illustration. “You know, if you’re gonna stay out all night, you should probably let Junior know, kid was about to put a BOLO out on you.” Beside Danny, Junior looked comically alarmed, shaking his head from side to side, wordlessly pleading his innocence. “Which, you know, with your history would not be out of line...”

“Do I look like I’m ashamed to you?” he shot back and Danny made a show of looking him up and down. 

“No, you do not.” His gaze zeroed in somewhere around Steve’s chest. “Matter of fact, you got a button issue right there...” He waggled a finger in illustration and when Steve looked down, sure enough he’d missed a button when he was fastening his shirt. Or, he considered, had he... Noelani’s fingers had been busy as he’d kissed her goodbye and she’d laughingly tried to get him to stay. 

“Oh. Thanks.” He glanced at his watch, reckoned he had just enough time for a shower. “I’m just going to-” He motioned to the stairs and Danny nodded. 

“Good idea; the perfume’s not really you, you know?” 

Steve didn’t try to hide his eye roll as he went upstairs and he didn’t try to hide it as he and Danny drove to headquarters either as Danny peppered him with more questions about his love life. “So when do we get to meet her?” 

“You want to meet her?”

“I want to warn her about your masochistic tendencies and penchant for danger, let the poor girl know what she’s letting herself in for, if that’s what you’re asking.” He didn’t actually know if Danny was joking or not. “But yes, all joking aside, I would like to meet her.” 

“Okay, you can meet her.” 

Danny’s head whipped around so quickly Steve thought he might have wrenched something. “I can?” His surprise made a certain amount of sense; Steve definitely remembered stonewalling for a while when he was dating Lynn. 

“Sure. We’ve got lunch plans this afternoon; I’ll bring her by headquarters afterwards.” 

“Dinner last night, a sleepover and now lunch? This must be serious.” 

It was on the tip of Steve’s tongue to agree but he bit it back. It seemed like the kind of thing he should say to Noelani first. So he grumbled to Danny, “I can’t win with you, you know that? I take it back, you’re not a sixteen year old girl. You’re a ninety year old grandma.” 

“Just looking out for you.”

Steve grimaced, knowing it was probably true. “Thanks, man.”

Of course, Steve’s luck being what it was, they managed to blow their case wide open that morning so that when he should have been calling Noelani to say he was on his way, he instead was calling her to cancel. On the edge of the street, surrounded by uniforms with Danny ten feet away from him. 

“Let me guess,” Noelani said when she picked up. “This is the first ‘it’s not you, it’s the job,’ call.”

“How did you know?” 

“Lucky guess.” She didn’t sound disappointed. “I guess you’ll just have to make it up to me.” 

That was definitely flirting, he thought, and he didn’t mind it at all. “How about drinks tonight?” he suggested. “My team want to meet my girlfriend.” 

In actual fact, only Danny had asked him about it but he knew the rest of them agreed and that Danny was merely the spokesman. “Well, I’d hate to disappoint the team...”

“What about me?” She laughed at that and he shook his head, his next words to her cut off by Lou’s voice calling his name. “I gotta go... I’ll call you later.” 

A few snatched phone calls later and a plan was made, drinks at Rumfire that evening. He was at Noelani’s house a full hour before the time they’d all agreed to meet and he was more than a little amused when she’d told him that Tani had sent her a message to invite her along as well. “I’m definitely firing her,” he said, with no real intent and Noelani’s arms went around his waist, her face tilted up to his. “What did you say?” 

“That I’d see her there.” She was the picture of innocence. “You didn’t expect me to lie to her, did you?” 

“You have an evil streak, you know that?” he decided. “Lucky for you, I can respect that.” He kissed her then, let himself lose track of time, just for a little while. 

Arriving at Rumfire, he could tell that the place was heaving with people and he took Noelani’s hand, lacing their fingers together. “You sure about this?” he asked, only half joking because he knew they were about to cause a minor sensation. The smile he got in return settled any nerves he might have had. “Okay, let’s go.” 

He led the way through the bar, the height difference making it far easier for him to spot the team’s table. He squeezed Noelani’s fingers, a wordless signal to get ready and she definitely shared a devilish streak with him because she stayed behind him, hidden from their view by his body. 

Damn, he knew he liked this woman. 

True to form, Danny saw him first - Steve was surprised he didn’t have a damn pair of binoculars. There was a beaming smile on his face as he greeted Steve, one that faltered only slightly as Steve stepped to one side, leaving Noelani visible. “Guys.” Noelani stepped closer to him at the same time as he dropped her hand, putting his arm around her shoulders instead. “Looks like the gang’s all here.” And all with jaws in various stages of dropping. He grinned down at Noelani. “You want a drink?” 

“I’ll come with you.” Noelani didn’t sound like there was any room for compromise so they headed for the bar, still with his arm around her shoulders, her arm going around his waist as they walked. “I figured we should give them a minute to digest,” she said as they reached the bar. “Get it out of their systems?” 

Privately, Steve thought it was going to take more than the few minutes they were at the bar. “Or we could give them something else to talk about,” he suggested, his hand sliding down to the small of her back and, after barely a moment’s hesitation, down lower. Her eyes darkened as her smile widened and she echoed his words of the previous evening. 

“I like the way you think, Commander,” she said when he leaned down and fit his lips to hers, she seemed to like that fine too.


	3. this is us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Missing scene / post ep from 10.05, the Halloween episode.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt : this is us

When Steve's phone rang on the way to a crime scene and Duke's name came up, there was only one thing that came to mind. Junior's words mirrored his thoughts exactly. "That can't be good." 

"Not on Hallowe'en." Steve connected the call. "Duke, what's up?" 

"Commander, I'm at the Medical Examiner's Office... we could use your help over here."

Duke's reply made his blood run cold because Noelani had texted him earlier to say that Lana Nakua's body had been found and that she was leaving Flippa's party in order to do the autopsy. He'd been a little disappointed, because she'd been working hard on her costume and hadn't let him see it, telling him that he had to wait to get the full effect, but on the other hand, it wasn't the first time their plans had been cancelled because of a crime scene and he knew it wouldn't be the last either. 

"What happened?" Was that abrupt? Yes. But Duke knew about his relationship with Noelani so he was pretty sure the other man would forgive him a lack of manners. 

"Noelani's fine." Steve sent up a silent thank you, both to Duke for answering the question he hadn't even asked, and whoever upstairs might be looking out for Noelani. "But there was a break-in... Lana Nakua's body has been stolen." 

Steve bit back a very bad word. "Duke, we're on our way." 

Not bothering with the usual rules of the road, he turned the car around as soon as he could, put his foot to the floor and made it to the ME's office in record time. He found Duke first, got the details of the case from him but even though every cell in his body was urging him to go to Noelani, to take her in his arms and hold her tight, he stayed where he was, on the other side of the door, watching her give her statement to one of the uniforms. 

"How's she doing?" he asked Duke, even if he already knew the answer just by looking at her. 

The other man looked into the room as well, his face drawn and worried. "She's taking it hard," he told Steve and Junior tilted his head, cast his eyes down the hall. 

"We'll take a look around," he said and even though Duke and his men already had it well in hand, he didn't object. "Duke, show me what you got?" 

Steve waited until they walked way before he went into the autopsy room and the uniform who was talking to Noelani took one look at him and made his excuses, having the good sense to close the door behind him. “Hey,” Steve said, taking a step towards Noelani. “Duke called me...” 

He’d continued to walk towards her as he was talking but he was stopped in his tracks when she held out a hand, palm facing him. “You can’t hug me right now,” she said and he wasn’t going to lie, that stung a little. 

“Noelani-”

“I mean it. Because if you hug me right now, I’m going to fall apart and I can’t do that, all right? I can’t.”

“Okay...okay...” He held out two hands, like she was a particularly dangerous animal that he was trying to calm. “No hugs. You got it.” He came as close to her as he could, positioned himself on the other side of the autopsy table, figuring it would prove a decent obstacle to temptation. “How you doing?”

As agitated as he’d ever seen her, Noelani took a breath, then the words spilled out. “Lana's parents were here less than two hours ago to identify their daughter's body. They left here thinking they were going to find answers. Instead, I had to call them and tell them that she was gone.” She paused for a second then, and he could almost see her reliving that call, could only imagine how much it would have cost her. “It was awful, Steve. The not knowing, the waiting for news every day, they told me that Lana's sister won't even get out of bed.” Then, the words that stunned him. “This is my fault!” 

“Hey.” As with Duke, the word was abrupt but it broke through her stream of thought. He braced his hands on the table in front of him, more to remind him that she didn’t want him to reach for her than for any other reason. “What are you talking about? This has nothing to do with you.” 

“I was here,” she protested. “I should have stayed with her.”

He could understand her thinking like that, but he was glad that her curiosity had got the better of her, glad that she hadn’t been in the room when whoever it was had taken Lana’s body. They’d already killed once, after all, it wasn’t that far of a stretch to think they would do it again. “The responsibility belongs to the person who stole Lana's body. That's it,” he told her. She looked down, like she didn’t believe him.

“Noelani?” She looked up at the sound of her name. “We're gonna go out there, we're gonna find that girl. And we're gonna bring her back. Okay?” 

Her deep breath in was audible, her shoulders rising almost up to her ears. “Okay,” she breathed, but her voice was still shaking and, when she reached up to adjust her glasses, her hand was trembling. 

“Hey.” His voice was low. “I promise, okay? I will find her and bring her back to you.” 

Another deep breath in, this time with her eyes closed. When she opened them again, her gaze seemed a little steadier, a little less conflicted than it had been seconds earlier. “I know you will.” Her lips turned up in the tiniest of smiles. 

“Okay.” He nodded, straightening up. “You’ll call me if you need me, right?” He might have phrased it as a question, but it wasn’t one and she might have known that because she nodded slowly. 

“I’m okay, Steve,” she told him. 

His lips twitched. “No, you’re not.” 

“No, I’m not.” But her shoulders were more relaxed and she was looking right at him so that was something. “But I will be.” He nodded, knowing that that would have to be enough for now. “Go get them.” 

Steve was a Team Guy, used to following orders. He didn’t intend to break the habit of a lifetime. “Yes, ma’am.” 

*

Hours later, he found himself back in the ME’s office again, this time walking beside the orderly who was pushing the gurney that bore Lana Nakua’s body. His gaze met Noelani’s as he made his way towards her, inclining his head in the smallest of nods. 

He stood beside her as the orderly brought the body into the autopsy room, heard her shuddering exhale. "Thank you."

"I told you we'd find her." His hand closed on her shoulder, squeezed gently. "It's pretty late, you know... no-one would blame you if you left this until morning."

For just a second, he saw the temptation in her eyes, saw her waver. She shut it down quickly though, which didn't surprise him. He’d known she wouldn’t take the out, had wanted to give it to her anyway. "No. I want to do this." A pause where she set her jaw. "I need to do this. It's the only way I'll sleep tonight."

"I get that." And he really did. It was the reason he was here right now instead of at Flippa's party, or back at his house, sacked out on the couch with Eddie. He'd promised Noelani he'd bring Lana back, not just to her parents, but to Noelani as well, and he'd kept that promise. The fact was that Noelani had made a promise of her own, to find answers, to bring the killer to justice... that type of promise didn't come with a clock off time, and he got that. 

The tiniest of smiles was his answer. "I'll call you when I'm done," she said and that did make him look at her strangely.

"Why? I'll be right here." Her eyes flared wide when the meaning hit, her mouth opening slightly and he knew she was about to protest, cut her off before she could. "Noelani, this is us, okay? This is what we do, fight the good fight, help the helpless." His other hand moved to her other shoulder and he turned her gently to face him, his thumbs tracing a path along her collar bone. "But you don't have to do it alone."

Tears shimmered in her eyes but she was smiling too. "Okay." Her shoulders rose and fell under his hands but he didn't let go until she nodded, went to take a step back.

"Do what you need to do," he told her. "I'll be right here when you're finished."

Another smile and, after a quick look around, she lifted herself up on her tiptoes and brushed her lips across his. Just a brief kiss, but he felt it nonetheless, all the way down to his toes. He touched her cheek, just for a second, then let her go, watched until she walked into the autopsy room and the door swung shut behind her.

Then he leaned against the wall, making himself comfortable, and began his wait.


	4. hold me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Post ep to 10.07 DNA

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prompt : hold me

To give Danny his credit, once their flight back from Washington landed, he didn’t even try to fight with Steve about who was driving. He simply handed Steve over the keys, didn’t even argue with him on the way home, just took out his phone and began tapping away at the keyboard. Figuring he was checking on the kids with Rachel, Steve kept his eyes on the road and his foot to the floor, driving almost on auto-pilot and he only snapped back to reality when he parked the Camaro outside his house and saw Junior standing there, like he was waiting for them. 

Maybe, Steve thought, awareness dawning through the fog, Danny hadn’t only been texting Rachel. 

But there was something that didn’t make sense. “You moving out on me?” Steve looked down at the duffel bag at Junior’s feet, looked back up with an eyebrow raised but the younger man just smiled, shook his head. 

“Nah... I’m just crashing on Danny’s couch tonight.” 

Steve’s gaze swung back towards Danny, standing at the driver’s side of his car with a smug grin on his face. “You’re welcome.” 

“Why his couch when you got a perfectly good bed here?” Steve asked Junior and the younger man actually looked embarrassed when he replied. 

“Just giving you some privacy is all.” He looked back over his shoulder then, up the path towards the front door and Steve followed his gaze, saw something there that he’d missed before. 

The front door open, the house inside brightly lit up. 

Someone standing in the front door, backlit so he could only make out their silhouette but that didn’t matter. 

He’d know Noelani anywhere. 

His whole time away, he hadn’t let himself think about her, think about waking up beside her, hearing her laugh, feeling her hand in his. He’d concentrated on the job, his mission, his mom, knowing to do anything else would be suicide, years of training allowing him to compartmentalise easily. 

But now he was here and she was standing only a few feet in front of him. A rush of emotion hit him like a freight train, his breath leaving him in a rush and then his feet started moving without him even being aware of it and they didn’t stop until he was standing in front of her. Her eyes were wide and dark, shimmering with tears as she whispered, “Hey.” 

“Hey.” His voice was rough, even to his own ears. “You’re here.” 

She nodded. “Yeah.” 

She took two steps back.

He took two steps forward. 

Then he was inside, kicking the door shut behind him, dropping his bag on the floor as she all but leaped into his arms. She buried her face in the crook of his neck, her arms winding around his neck and into his hair as he lifted her off her feet, letting his head fall to her shoulder, breathing in the scent of her. His arms tightened around her, pulling her as close to him as he could possibly get, allowing himself to get lost in the touch and feel of her. 

He didn’t know how long it was that they stood there like that but eventually he set her down and she looked up at him, one hand going to his cheek. “You’re home.” She sounded slightly amazed, like she couldn’t believe it, like she hadn’t let herself believe it until that moment. Her thumb swept up and down his skin and he could feel her trembling. 

Or maybe that was him. 

“Yeah, Noelani... I’m home.” He leaned in, rested his forehead against hers, gulped in another deep breath. “God, I missed you.” 

She laughed at that, a noise of pure happiness that was so at odds with anything Steve had experienced since he'd last seen her that it was almost painful. “I missed you too,” she whispered, rising up on her tiptoes and brushing her lips across his. Only a brief kiss, then her hands moved down and she took both of his in hers, took a step back. “Do you want to talk about it?” 

He considered it, ended up shaking his head. “No.” 

He thought she might disagree but she just nodded. “Okay.” She squeezed his fingers. “C’mon.”

Only when she led him to the stairs did he realise that what he’d thought was one of her shirt dresses was actually one of his shirts, sleeves rolled up to her elbows, hem falling almost to her knees. He pulled at it a little as they walked and she grinned over her shoulder at him. “I should admit,” she said, “I stayed over here once or twice when you were gone.” 

The idea of her sleeping in his shirts, in his bed, sent a rush of emotion through him. He’d been numb for so long that he wasn’t used to it, felt a lump rising in his throat, felt his eyes smart and he found himself battling back tears. He took a deep breath to compose himself and then suddenly they were in his room, standing beside the bed and she was looking up at him, her hands on his chest, playing with the buttons of his shirt. “Come to bed,” she said softly and wasn’t that the best offer he’d had in weeks. 

He undressed quickly, breaking the habit of a lifetime by leaving shirt and pants on the floor, crawled into bed beside her and for once, by unspoken agreement, they arranged themselves differently, with him scooting down so that his head could rest on her chest, his ear lying right over her heart. He closed his eyes, concentrating on the steady rhythm as she wrapped her arms around him, one of them reaching up and around to play with his hair. 

He didn’t make the decision consciously but somehow, he started talking and he told her everything. About the ambush that had killed Dias, about that dingy little room in Culiacán and tracking down Doris. How she’d struck him with her pistol, the things she’d said, the look of desperation in her eyes. The firefight with Perez, how Doris has died right in front of him, what her last words were, her handler’s admission that she’d stayed on mission the whole time. 

And in the end, his deepest secret, his worst fear. 

“I keep wondering... if I hadn’t gone down there... if I’d left well enough alone... would she still be alive? Did I get her killed?” 

“No.” Her fingers stilled in his hair and he knew from her voice that she was crying. “You can’t think like that, Steve... this was not your fault.” 

“Isn’t it? If I’d done one thing differently...”

“Steve, no.” He felt her shake her head, strands of her hair moving against his skin. “I know how much you’ve lost the last few years... I know you’re used to being the one people go to, the one who fixes everything, who solves everyone’s problems... but you can’t fix everything. You can’t save everyone.” She kissed the top of his head. “No matter how hard you try.” 

“Yeah, well...” He took a deep breath. “That’s stupid.” 

“I know.” Another kiss to the top of his head and her fingers kept moving through his hair, moving down to the nape of his neck and lingering there. “But that’s what you do... fight the good fight... help the helpless... but you don’t have to do it alone.”

There was something familiar about the words and it took a second for it to register what it was. Then the penny dropped and he remembered standing outside an autopsy room on Halloween, saying those very words to her. “Thief,” he murmured and he felt as well as heard her chuckle. 

“Yep.” There was a moment of silence, then a quiet, “What can I do?” 

He didn’t have to think about his answer. “This,” he said, wrapping himself tighter around her body and she did likewise, holding him until they both fell asleep. 

It was the best sleep he’d had in weeks.


	5. I love you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt : I love you

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post ep to 10.09 the thanksgiving episode

“Hey, you’re here!” 

Mindful of the garden already filling up with people all around him, Steve crossed the grass to greet Noelani, leaning down to kiss her on the cheek. “Sorry I’m late.” Her lips twisted up in a grimace - he knew how much she hated being late; it was something they had in common. “I got caught up doing the paperwork for Lena's repatriation... it took longer than I thought.” She shifted her overnight bag on her shoulder. “I came straight here.” 

Which went a little way to explaining why she was still in the clothes she’d wear to work rather than party clothes. “No problem.” His hand lingered on her shoulder. “Let’s go get you changed...” He looped a finger under the bag’s strap. “I'll take that for you...” He looked around them, found Danny talking to Duke, the two of them studiously not looking in his and Noelani’s direction. “Hey, Danny, take over host duties for a minute, will you? Earn your keep.” 

He was teasing and Danny took it completely in stride, rolling his eyes and responding as only he could. “Sure... I come to you in my hour of need and get put to work, that’s just great.” Then, to Duke, “You see what I have to put up with?” 

Knowing he could riff like that for hours, Steve shouldered the bag and dropped his other arm around Noelani’s shoulders, leading her into the house and up the stairs. Once they got to his room, he deposited the bag on his bed, sliding his arms around her waist from behind, dodging her elbows as she reached up to pull her hair out of its ponytail at the same time. It made them both laugh and he dipped his head, kissing her cheek first before he started to trail a path down her neck. 

Her whole body relaxed against him, her hands closing over his. Her words, though, were at complete odds with her body language. “Steve... we can’t...”

“Can’t what?” he grinned and she shifted slightly, pulling back so she could look up at him. 

“You know what everyone in your back yard thinks we’re doing right now.” 

He shrugged one shoulder. “So why disappoint them?” He kissed her lips then, deep and slow and she responded enthusiastically, turning in his arms and threading her fingers through his hair, opening her mouth to his. 

Only for a moment though, then she pulled away. “Save that for later, Commander,” she said, her eyes dancing and he groaned theatrically, flopping down on the bed and making himself comfortable. 

“You know there’s no hope of me leaving here to let you get dressed by yourself, right?” 

She grinned as she unzipped her bag. “I had an inkling.” 

“Just so we’re clear.” A mass of yellow material, flowers printed on it, landed on the bed near him and he pulled it up, his excuse being that he didn’t want it to crease. In reality, he just wanted a sneak preview of what she was wearing, but the dress surprised him a little. The skirt didn’t look that different to what she normally wore when she got dressed up to go out; the top however, was a little more... well, revealing would be the most polite word. 

“Relax.” He could hear the smile in her voice, even though her face was turned away from him as she unfastened her pants. “There’s a shrug to go with it.” That made things a little different and he lay back against the pillows, making himself comfortable as she slipped off her pants, folding them up and putting them into her bag. “Are you disappointed or relieved right now?” 

He was more focused on her fingers making short work of the buttons on her shirt when he said, “I have no idea.” She laughed out loud at that and her shirt landed squarely on his face. Which he had to admit, he probably deserved. “Nice throw.” He pulled the shirt away, intending to fold it for her but he stopped when he saw her standing there in only her underwear, a pretty matching set in a pale lilac that looked amazing against her skin. 

He silently took back every time he’d ever made fun of Danny for his appreciation for women in lingerie. 

“Wow,” he said and it might not have been the most eloquent, but from the smile on her face, she didn’t care. “Get over here.” 

She gave him a look. “You have a house full of guests.” She was almost prim, apart from her eyes. They were dancing with mirth and, if he didn’t miss his guess, a little interest. “All waiting for you.” 

“I’ll send them home with doggy bags.” But he knew he’d lost the battle when she reached for the dress, slipping it over her head. “You’re killing me here, you know that?” 

“I’m a doctor,” she reminded him with a wink. “I think you’ll survive.” 

The shrug did its job of covering what needed to be covered, but he foresaw a long day of temptation as she did up the tie in some elaborate knot that left two ribbons of material swaying tantalisingly every time she moved. “Almost ready.” She ran a brush through her hair then disappeared into the bathroom to touch up her makeup. He watched her through the door for a minute, then pushed himself up, went over to stand behind her. The material of the dress was silky smooth over her hips and under his hands and she caught his eye in the mirror, a slight frown appearing on her face when she saw his. "Are you okay?"

She'd asked him that a few times since he'd come home from Mexico and he'd always given her the same answer, even if it wasn't entirely true. Those were the times she'd pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes and let him know without saying a word that she wasn't buying it. 

Today, his answer was different. 

“I’m just glad you’re here,” he told her softly, resting his chin on top of her head. 

Her smile was gentle as she settled back into his embrace. “Me too.” 

Just then, there was loud explosion of laughter from outside. Sighing, Steve kissed the top of her head. “Guess that’s our cue.” 

Hand in hand, they made their way downstairs to the party. 

Probably because Noelani was a friend of theirs too, Lou and Danny only razzed him a little about how much time he’d spent upstairs with her, but he was glad that he had because, as the day passed and the yard filled up, he only caught passing glimpses of her for most of the day. Still, there was enough smiling and meeting her eyes across a crowded room for Danny to start rolling his eyes - which, sure, didn’t actually take much, but when Junior started smirking, it was a slightly different matter. 

The sun was starting to go low on the horizon when Steve wandered over to the beach chairs, sat down beside Danny and handed him a beer. “What, is this payment for my hosting duties earlier?” Danny quipped and Steve nodded, looking out to sea. 

“Yeah, that’s what it is.” A moment of silence, then he continued, “You sure you’ll be okay on the couch? You know your back’s gonna give you hell, right?”

“I’ll take my chances. Because of the mould.” Danny was sticking to his story. “Though I gotta say, I didn’t realise this place was getting so crowded. I mean, there’s me, Junior, Noelani...” He raised his beer to his lips, took a sip. “How’s that going?”

Steve hid his smile in his beer bottle, recognising a fishing expedition when he saw one. “Good,” he said. “It’s going good.” 

“You know, she practically moved in here when you were...” Danny made a waving motion with his hand which Steve figured was shorthand for “gone for two months chasing after your mother for the CIA.” He appreciate the other man’s uncharacteristic discretion but he was a little taken aback by what he’d actually said. Noelani had told him she’d stayed over a couple of times, but Danny was making it sound like it was more than that. “The rest of us, see, we’re used to you going off gallivanting on some dangerous mission halfway around the world, she’s not. I think... I think it freaked her out a little. And I mean, it was worse for you, I’m not disputing that; Noelani’s strong, she’s tough, I’m not disputing that either. But don’t let her Little Susie Sunshine act fool you... she took it hard.” 

Steve had figured as much; having it confirmed made his gut twist and he took a long swallow of his beer to try to rid himself of the lump in his throat. “Thanks for looking out for her.” 

“I would say any time but knowing you, you’d just take that as a challenge.” 

Steve took another pull of his beer, thought of Noelani, how far they’d come from that first night at the Wailana Coffee House. Thought even further back than that, back to the very first time she’d ever been to his house, when he’d called her to patch up Sang Min and the other man had been his usual sleazy self. He’d known Noelani was made of stern stuff when she hadn’t run screaming from the room. “She’s a hell of a woman.” 

“Better than you deserve, that’s for sure.” It wasn’t the first time Danny had said that. It wasn’t the first time Steve agreed with him either. “You told her that?” 

Steve looked out at the horizon for a long moment. “Not yet,” he said and Danny’s huff of disgust was easy to ignore as he stood up. “But I’m about to.” 

Of course, it wasn’t that easy. When he made his way back to the rest of the party, Tani was sitting beside Noelani, her eyes wide. “I can’t believe you don’t know how to surf!” she was saying and Noelani shrugged, looking very unconcerned. 

“I was never very sporty as a kid,” she said. “And then by the time I was brave enough to want to try it, I figured I was too old.” 

“You’re never too old, Steve, tell her.” Tani was quite insistent and Steve looked down at Noelani and dutifully agreed. 

“You’re never too old.” 

“You should come out with us some day.” A wave of Tani’s hand encompassed her and Junior. “I’ve been surfing since I was a kid... and Junes, he’s not too bad.” Steve had heard her say something along those lines many times, usually to tease Junior. She grinned in the younger man’s direction, then her gaze, laser sharp, turned to Steve. “How come you haven’t taught her?” 

Junior, looking like a man who still respected the chain of command and therefore wanted no part of this conversation, jumped in. “Steve, sit down.” He stood up, leaving his chair beside Tani, which surprised Steve a lot and told him a lot about how much Junior wanted to change the tenor of this particular conversation. “I’ll grab another chair.” 

“Oh good idea.” Tani slid across into the chair Junior had just vacated, leaving a chair free beside Noelani. “Sit down.” 

Steve didn’t have to be asked twice, making himself comfortable beside Noelani, scooting his chair a little closer to hers. She smiled across at him and it was the most natural thing in the world for him to stretch his arm out and rest it across her shoulders. That caused her smile to widen and she shifted on her chair, moving closer to him so that, even though they were each sitting on their own chair, their lower bodies were touching. Pushing his luck, Steve leaned in and brushed his lips across hers in a quick kiss and when he looked back, half the eyes in the place were on them, while the rest were studiously looking absolutely anywhere else. 

“What?” he asked the gathering at large. “Haven’t you ever seen a guy kiss his girl before?” 

That brought a round of laughter and he leaned in and kissed Noelani again, for longer this time, just to prove his point. She laughed into the kiss, brought her palm up to cup his cheek and keep him there when he tried to move away and all in all, it was a pretty perfect moment when he hadn’t had too many of them lately. 

He thought of that again later on that night, when everyone had gone and the clean up had been left until the morning, when he sat on the end of his bed watching Noelani as she stood at the bathroom sink, taking off her makeup. There was an easy silence between them, their eyes meeting in the mirror every so often, a contented smile on her face as she picked up her hairbrush and went to work. He felt the same sort of smile come to his lips as he watched her, felt like he could do this forever. 

He didn’t stand when she came out but he did hold out his hands to her and she took the silent hint, coming over to stand in between his legs, her hands going to his shoulders as his moved up to the ribbons on her shrug that, as he’d known they would, had proved a maddening temptation every time he looked at her. “I’ve been thinking about this all day,” he said as he pulled them loose, pushing the shrug off her shoulders, letting it fall to the ground. His eyes roamed over the expanse of skin now on view and he decided it was a very good thing she’d had the cover up - they never would have made it through the party otherwise. 

There was nothing soft about Noelani’s smile now. Wicked was more like it. “Good to know,” she said, one hand sliding around to the back of his neck, playing with his hair. She knew what that did to him. 

His hands moved to her hips, pushing against the material there, then stilling as he looked up at her. There was a slight question in her eyes as she tilted her head. He took a deep breath before he spoke. “I know the last few months haven’t been easy for you... me being gone, and then when I came back...” 

“Steve-”

“No, Noelani.” He softened the words with a self deprecating smile. “I know it’s not what you signed up for. It’s not what anyone signs up for. My life, the Five-0... it’s a lot. Even for me, it’s a lot.” His hands moved around, up and down her back. “I couldn’t do it without all those people out there today... but I want you to know, the best part of today? Was looking across that yard at you and knowing I had this to look forward to. Knowing I had you. ” 

A soft giggle escaped her and she shook her head, looking somewhere over his shoulder. She was blinking furiously. “You’re gonna make me cry.” 

“I hope not.” He reached up one hand to cup her cheek, took it as a good sign when she leaned into the touch. “I love you, Noelani,” he whispered. 

Her lips parted slightly and he felt her freeze. Only for a moment though, then she surged into him, her lips meeting his as she wound her arms around his neck. Returning the kiss as enthusiastically as it was received, he moved them so that she was lying on her back, him half on top of her, hands wandering, lips exploring, fingers unfastening. He made love to her slowly, thoroughly, swallowing her gasps of pleasure, mindful of Danny downstairs and Junior down the hall. 

But afterwards, when she whispered, “I love you too,” he didn’t care if the whole world heard her.


	6. what I did for love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve comes to a decision about his relationship with Noelani.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For a weekend challenge , Prompt, “What I did for love”
> 
> This is where the angst warning comes in. And also the second part of the summary.

The warehouse was dark and cavernous, the team's footsteps echoing through it no matter how quietly they tried to move. Steve led the way across the floor slowly, hugging the wall, all his attention on the door at the other end of the room. Upon reaching it, he shifted his firearm slightly, met Junior's gaze. Jerking his head down towards the doorknob, the other man read his silent signal and nodded. Once Junior's hand was on the doorknob, Steve held up three fingers, counted down and Junior threw the door open, Steve leading the way into another room as cavernous as the first. 

But this room wasn't empty. 

This room had a chair in the middle of it and on that chair was Noelani. Her ankles were tied to the legs, her hands behind her and Steve didn't have to look to know that they were bound too. She lifted her head as the door opened, her eyes meeting Steve's and it took every second of training he'd ever had, every ounce of willpower he possessed, not to react. Her face was red and bruised, one eye completely swollen shut. There was blood on her lower jaw and around her temple, her hair a tangled mess. She moaned something that might have been his name and Steve's hand tightened on the barrel of his gun. 

"Commander McGarrett, just in time." Daiyu Mei's voice was silky smooth and the gun she held to Noelani's temple didn't waver. 

"We have this place surrounded," he told her, but he never took his eyes off Noelani. He couldn't. "You're not getting out of here."

Strangely, she didn't seem upset by this. "I know." 

He heard the words, the tone, and he knew. That was when his eyes swung from Noelani's face to hers, when he saw the flash of triumph there as she pulled the trigger. 

Steve's own shout of "NO!" echoed in his ears along with the gunshot and he woke up with a start, drenched in sweat, his heart pounding. 

Sitting up in bed, he ran his hands over his face, looking around him at the familiar room before his gaze swung back to the bed and the woman sleeping beside him. Noelani hadn't stirred through his nightmare, probably due to the fact that she was a sound sleeper and years of SEAL training meaning that Steve's nightmares weren't the tossing and turning variety. Steve was grateful for that, one less thing to explain, even as his hand reached out, almost of its own volition, to run along her shoulder, brush back her hair. 

Gentle as his touch was, it still did what his nightmare hadn't, reached through her slumber and had her taking in a deep breath, turning her head to look over her shoulder at him. "Good morning," she murmured, still sleepy, and he smiled, dropped his head to her shoulder and placed a kiss there. "What time is it?"

He didn't bother checking the clock. "Early." His hand moved from her shoulder down her back and underneath the covers, resting on her hip for a moment before sliding around to ghost across her stomach. "Very early." A kiss to the side of her neck, right on the spot that always made her shiver and he closed his eyes, pushing the dream to the background, breathing in the scent of her and letting it calm him. This is reality, he reminded himself. This is good. 

Noelani, oblivious to his inner turmoil, rocked against him, bringing their lower bodies into closer contact. "So you mean I could still be sleeping?" Her voice was filled with mirth and it made him smile. They were generally pretty compatible but how they woke up in the morning was a huge difference. "You'd better have a good reason for waking me up..." 

"Why don't I see what I can come up with..." he murmured, shifting so that she could lie on her back and he could kiss his way down her body. 

She didn't have any complaints after that. 

*

Morning aside, he found it hard to shake off the memory of the nightmare and, after a day where they miraculously didn't catch a case, a day where he could do a deep dive into Daiyu Mei's past, her psychological profile, he knew why. 

The woman was ruthless and, like her husband, completely without conscience when it came to getting her own way. She would do anything for her own ends, use any means necessary to intimidate her enemy, to hurt them. Nothing, and no-one, was off-limits. 

Steve was a Navy SEAL, he’d seen a lot of bad people do a lot of bad things. 

This woman was terrifying. 

And reading her file, reading about the things she had done, Noelani’s face from his nightmare seared into the back of his eyelids, he knew what he had to do.

Standing in Noelani's kitchen that evening, he listened as she told him about her latest email from Max and how she was going to have to go out shopping for candy to feed Tunde's new addiction and he knew he couldn't let it go on any longer. 

"Noelani..." He said her name slowly, hardly able to believe what he was about to say. "We can't see each other anymore." 

Noelani went very, very still, her shoulders stiffening in a way he'd never seen before. It was a full thirty seconds - he counted - before she turned around and when she did, her eyes were dark and stormy. "That's not funny." 

"I know. I know." He ran a hand over his face. "I'm sorry." 

"You're going to have to give me a reason, Steve." Noelani squared her shoulders, crossed her arms over her chest. "Because when we woke up this morning, everything was fine." A memory of just how fine it had been, the sensation of her body moving against his, the feel of her skin under his hands and lips, flashed unbidden in front of him and he pushed it away ruthlessly. This was not the time. 

There were a lot of things he could have told her, he knew that. A voice like Danny Williams enumerated them in the back of his head: the job, he was still torn up about his mom, he was a disaster and she deserved better. 

In the end, he went with the truth. He'd never lied to her, he wasn't about to start now. "Daiyu Mei."

She blinked, frowned. "The arms dealer you thought kidnapped Junior?" 

"Wo Fat's wife." She'd known that, of course, he'd told her all about the connection. And she knew all about his family's history with Wo Fat. But he knew from the confused shake of her head that she couldn't understand this, not yet. "I killed Wo Fat, Noelani," he told her. "Shot him in the head without a minute's regret. And now I find out he had a wife, who's a red flag on an Interpol Watch List. I know how these people work... psychopaths, with a flair for drama, everything’s an eye for an eye. If we're together, if she finds out about you..."

"Don't you think she already knows?" Noelani didn't let him finish, took a step closer to him, then another. "We haven't exactly been hiding things, Steve." Which was one of his big worries, but he knew it was all the more reason why he had to do this. 

"If we're together, there is a target on your back." He believed that, knew it to be true like he knew his own name. "If we're not, then she can't use you against me. You'll be safe." 

"I don't want to be safe." She was in front of him then, her hands making fists in his shirt, her eyes dry and determined. "I want to be with you." 

"Noelani..." Her name was a sigh from his lips as his hands found her shoulders, rubbing them gently. "I listened as Wo Fat shot my dad, I heard him die... Joe, my mom, they died right in front of me. I can't lose..." His throat closed up and he swallowed hard. "I can't lose anyone else." 

It wasn't his first choice of words and from the way she dropped her head on to his chest, he thought she might know that. 

"Noble." She said, her words muffled by his shirt. "And stupid." 

He chuckled. "That's me." She lifted her head and he caressed her cheek. "Noble and stupid." He leaned down and kissed her then, tried not to taste the salt of both their tears. 

It didn't work.


	7. please

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On Valentine’s Day, Steve and Noelani talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post ep for the Valentines Day ep

The Citizen Kane of romantic comedies it might have been, but Steve was having a hard time keeping his attention on "Love Actually". For once, it had nothing to do with the plot, nothing to do with a lack of gunfire and explosions, nothing to do with the film being, as Danny would often call it, the ultimate chick flick. 

Instead, it had everything do with Noelani being curled up on the opposite couch, Tani on the other side of her, their two heads close together as they laughed over the film and doubtless continued their bonding after their surfing lesson today. 

Yeah, Steve had heard about that. 

He'd heard about what had happened afterwards too. 

He thought he'd done a pretty good job at not freaking out too badly over the whole thing but seeing Noelani here, knowing what she'd gone through today, wanting nothing more than to go over there and take her in his arms, make sure she was all right, yet knowing it wasn’t his place to do that any more... it was making him jittery. And if he didn't know that, Danny was sure to remind him. "Would you stop, with the leg?" he muttered, looking down at Steve's left knee with a disgusted look on his face. "What, are you bouncing an invisible baby there?" 

For once, Steve bit back a snappy retort and it was made much easier when Noelani stood up, holding up her empty beer bottle. "I'm going for a refill," she announced. 

Steve watched as she disappeared into the kitchen and when she vanished from sight, he stood up too. "I'll just stretch my legs. To stop you complaining."

He didn't think he was fooling anyone and when behind him he heard Danny saying, "I'll just-", Tani cutting him off with a firm, "Sit down," he knew he wasn't. 

When he got to the kitchen, Noelani had already got a new bottle from the refrigerator, was reaching for the bottle opener. "Hey," she said, her eyes going wide. 

"Hey." Steve moved closer to her, stopping a good six feet away, far enough to not be a threat, close enough to see her properly, observe any reactions she might be trying to hide. "How are you? After today, I mean. Adam told me what happened." And he might have gone through the case report with a fine tooth comb before he'd come home. Might have looked at the camera footage from inside the store as well, his eyes on Noelani the whole time. Not so much pressing on a bruise as opening a wound, but he hadn't been able to help himself. 

Noelani shrugged, affecting a smile, though he could see the slight tremor in her hand. "I'm okay," she said. Then, as she popped the top on the beer, "It's not my first time being taken hostage."

"I know." Steve remembered all too well the first time that that had happened, when she'd been kidnapped and forced to perform surgery with her mentor. More specifically, he remembered what happened afterwards; pancakes at the Wailana Coffee House, laughter and conversation and, most important of all, their first kiss, the almost giddy realisation that they were on the cusp of something really good. "I remember." 

From the flush on her cheeks, she was remembering too. She held his gaze for a moment, then turned away from him, dropping her beer bottle on the counter, bracing her forearms against it. Steve had never seen her like that before, took a careful step towards her. "Noelani?" 

"I had a knife to my throat today, Steve," she said quietly, straightening up and turning to face him. "Tani and I were trying to find a way to get out of that store without anyone getting killed and all I could think was that I might die there..." The thought had crossed his mind too, and it terrified him. He was probably going to have some new material in his nightmares tonight. "And it was nothing to do with Daiyu Mei... it was just being in the wrong place at the wrong time." She took a step towards him, then another until she was standing right in front of him, close enough to touch. He knew he should take a step back, knew he should run, but he was frozen to the spot. "I see people on my autopsy table every day, Steve... not just murder victims either. Ordinary people who were just living their lives and they had no clue that it was going to be their last day..." There were tears in her eyes now and he hated to see that. "And I'm reminded every time how precious life is... how we can't waste it." Her hands landed on his shirt, palms flat against his chest. 

His hands went, almost of their own accord, to her hips, drawing her closer to him. "Noelani... I know what you're saying, but..."

Her sigh was almost strong enough to knock him over and she leaned forward, a tower of strength toppling slowly, until her head was against his chest. “Please, Steve... just think about it.” 

In truth, he’d done nothing but think about it since the day he called it off. Gone over and over his decision, considered every eventuality, every outcome, every possible play that Daiyu Mei could make. 

And every single one of them ended up with Noelani hurt. Or worse. 

“If I thought... for one second... you’d be safer at my side...” She looked up then, her eyes damp, and he cupped her face in both hands, wiping the tears away with the pads of his thumb. 

Noelani sighed. “Noble and stupid.” 

“That’s me.” His thumbs swept over her cheeks again and he could no more stop himself from leaning down and kissing her than he could stop the incoming tide. It was both longer than it should have been and too brief by half, and when he pulled back, it was just far enough to rest his forehead against hers. 

She sucked in a shuddering breath, let it out slowly then stepped away, wiping at her face. “I should get back out there,” she said. Another rub of her face and she looked up at him. “Do I look like I’ve been crying?” 

“Nah,” he said, which had the advantage of being true. “You look gorgeous.” Which was also true. 

Noelani’s hand slid into his, but only for a moment, her fingers squeezing his lightly. “See you out there,” she said quietly, grabbing her beer and walking past him, leaving him alone with his thoughts. 

He stood there for a long time.


	8. locked out of heaven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve sends Quinn to help Noelani when she has suspicions about her uncle’s death

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Missing scenes/post ep to 10.18  
> Random words bingo card 7

When his cell phone rang and Noelani’s face popped up on the screen - a shot he’d snapped over dinner at Maile’s Thai Bistro, a glass of wine in her hand and candlelight illuminating her eyes - Steve didn’t think twice about taking the call. No matter that he and Noelani hadn’t really talked much since they’d kissed at his home on Valentines Day, or that he was on a ship in the middle of the ocean in the middle of a case involving pirates.

Noelani was in Maui at her uncle’s funeral. 

She wasn’t going to be calling for an idle chat. 

He answered because he knew what time her flight left, had been thinking about her all morning. Not, he would admit, that that was unusual. He thought about her a lot, more than he should considering that he was the one who’d called things off. But he’d been concerned the second he’d heard about Noelani’s uncle and realised she’d be going home to Maui at such an emotional time, knowing that the family upheaval associated with sudden deaths would no doubt exacerbate the tensions between Noelani and her parents. He’d seen Noelani after telephone conversations with them, where the tension knots in her shoulders were visible from clear across the room, strong enough to make his own muscles ache in sympathy. He’d listened to her frustrations, wiped her tears, given her back rubs and they’d begun to make tentative plans that the next time she went back for a visit, he’d use up some of his accrued vacation time - which, as Danny often reminded him, was coming up on two years’ worth - and he’d go home with her. 

But that was then. 

Before Daiyu Mei and the decision he’d made to protect Noelani from her, plunging them both into a hell of his own making. 

Listening to her, he knew she was upset but trying to hide it, could hear her agitation clearly in her voice. Hearing how the Maui coroner blew her off had his stomach clenching and he knew that if he wasn’t on this damn ship, he’d be on the next plane over there himself, ready to knock some respect into the man. But he was on the case so the only thing he could do was promise to send Quinn over, tell Noelani, “Whatever’s going on, we’re going to get to the bottom of it.” 

He called Quinn right away, kept his instructions brief. “I need you to go to Maui... Noelani’s over there, she thinks something is off with her uncle’s death.” He thought he might have to explain it more but Quinn got there quicker than he might have hoped. 

“Noelani’s got great instincts,” she said and, even though he knew it wasn’t his place anymore, Steve couldn’t help the swell of pride he felt on Noelani’s behalf. “If she says it’s off, it probably is. I’ll let you know what we find.” 

Steve should have hung up right then and there. He didn’t. “Quinn?” There was a pause where he tried to work out what to say and Quinn, for once, didn’t rush him. “Just... just take care of her?” The “for me,” went unspoken but he thought she might have heard it anyway. 

And when she said, “I’m on it,” he knew it for sure. 

Give his newest hire credit where it was due, she kept Steve in the loop every step of the way, helping Noelani to prove that her suspicions had been correct, that her uncle had been murdered. She’d even accompanied Noelani to the funeral and, when Noelani had been at the reception afterwards, Quinn had stepped out to give Steve one final update. 

“We’ll be heading back on the next flight,” she said. “I thought we might head to La Mariana for a beer... you know, if anyone else wants to head there too.” 

It might have been phrased as a light suggestion but for Steve, it was nothing short of an anvil dropped from a great height. “I’ll spread the word,” he said and then, before he hung up, “Thanks, Quinn.” 

“Noelani did all the heavy lifting,” Quinn said. “Honestly, if she ever gets tired of being an ME, you should give her a job.” 

“I think she’s happy where she is, but I’ll keep that in mind,” Steve grinned. “You get her to La Mariana, I’ll see you guys there.” 

Sure enough, by the time Quinn and Noelani got there, the whole team were there and with one look Steve could see two things. First, that Noelani wasn’t too keen on being there. Second, that she was grateful they’d all arrived to support her. 

She didn’t dance, not at first, which Steve knew to be unusual - she’d never had a problem dancing with him. He knew by looking at her that she was exhausted, but watching Tani and Junior’s dance competition with Quinn and Rick brought some light back to her face, her laughter reaching clear across the table, helping Steve to relax as well. Truth be told, he couldn’t take his eyes off her all night and it didn’t go unnoticed, as he found out when Noelani had been dragged out on to the dance floor by Quinn and Tani, the three of them laughing and dancing to some bubblegum pop music that Steve vaguely recognised as N*SYNC and he really, really did not want to think too hard about why he remembered that. 

Of course, it was Danny who called him out on it. 

“So... you realise you’ve been staring at Noelani like some creepy stalker for the last five minutes, right? I mean, not that I can blame you... She is a beautiful woman, she’s smart, she’s kind, she’s whip sharp with the sass... I mean, did you see her hang Quinn out to dry with that Rick guy?” 

“I did see that.” Steve raised his beer to his lips, staring across the room at the three ladies, a smile coming unbidden as he watched Noelani laugh. Of all the things he missed about her - and they were legion - her sense of humour, to say nothing of snark, was high on the list. 

“And yet, here you are, nursing a beer with the guys instead of cosying up with the lady of your dreams.” Steve shot him a look that was meant to convey danger. Unfortunately, Danny must have become immune to it somewhere in the last ten years because he spread his hands wide, shrugged his shoulders. “I’m just saying, if I had a woman like that, I would not be standing in a corner, staring across the room at her like I’m locked out of heaven, that’s all I’m saying.” 

“Maybe you should date her then.” Even as he said the words, Steve’s stomach twisted unpleasantly. A swallow of beer did nothing to chase the taste of bile out of his mouth at the images that flashed through his mind, Danny and Noelani dancing together, walking hand in hand, arms wrapped around each other... 

He was pulled back to reality by Danny moving closer to him, almost like he was squaring up for a fight. “Steve... and I say this with great affection... you are an idiot. Even I did have feelings for Noelani, which a, I do not and b, even if I did, I would never commit such an egregious violation of the guy code, no-one else would have a chance with her because, and I have no idea why, because the woman could do so much better, she is crazy in love with you.” 

Steve shook his head. “Danny, we’ve been over this,”

Danny threw his hands up to the sky. “Daiyu Mei, yes, I know. But that woman has been quiet for months now, we’ve no way of knowing what, or when, her final end game is going to be. What, you’re going to stop living your life because you’re scared of what might happen? You’re really gonna do yourself dirty like that?” Steve didn’t reply to that, just took another pull of his beer. “Okay, fine. But you’re gonna end up old and alone, you know that?” 

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’ll have you.” 

“Yeah, that’s what I’m afraid of,” Danny grumbled. “Look, all I’m saying is, you’re cutting your nose off to spite your face and you are going to regret it. That’s all.” 

With that, he moved off to speak to Lou and Steve was left staring across the dance floor as Noelani was twirled around by Rick, who was taking any excuse to be in Quinn’s orbit and had joined the ladies on the dance floor. Her smile was bright as sunshine, her head thrown back in delight and he’d seen that expression any amount of times in the few months they’d been dating. A flash of jealousy, sharp as lightning, shot through him, even though he knew there was absolutely no interest on either of their parts. 

“Yeah, Danno,” he said, even though Danny wasn’t listening any more. “I already do.”


	9. you’re my person

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve leaves Hawaii

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post ep for “Aloha”

“Aloha... a hui hou.”

Steve let the door close behind him, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly before heading to his truck. He’d only gone a couple of steps before the sight of a familiar face stopped him in his tracks. Sitting in his garden, on the bench just in front of the archway was Noelani, her hands joined in her lap, her teeth worrying her lower lip. When she saw him, she smiled, although it didn’t quite reach her eyes. 

“I wondered where you were,” he said as he approached her and she shrugged as she stood up. 

“I didn’t want to say goodbye in front of everyone,” she said and he couldn’t exactly blame her for that. They’d both been aware that their relationship had been grist for the rumour mill, had just smiled through it, taken it as something that came with the territory of a workplace romance. Their breakup had been subject to the same scrutiny. This, however, was something a little bit different. “And I didn’t know if you’d want to see me.” 

The idea that she could think that tugged at his heart strings. “Always,” he said quietly and she smiled softly as she looked down. 

"So... you're really leaving?" She looked up then, a question in her eyes and he sighed. If saying goodbye to Danny had been hard, this was just as hard, albeit in a different way. Danny was still his Danno, always would be. But Noelani... Steve had given up the right to have anything to do with her life and, though he'd had regrets in the immediate aftermath and the months since, given the way things had worked out in the last couple of weeks, he thought he'd made the right call. 

But there would always be a part of him that regretted what might have been. 

"Yeah." He sighed again. "I came back to the island ten years ago to bury my father... and I jumped straight into the task force... before that, it was the Navy... it's been a lot. I don't think I even realised how much." The words came easily to him, but then, she'd always been easy to talk to. "I just need... I need some time, Noelani. Some space. Away from all of this." 

A wave of his hand encompassed the island, the house, everyone inside it. Noelani nodded. "I get that. I do." She turned her head towards the house, a frown appearing. "How's Danny?"

"He's good... he's getting there." 

"I guess you were right." He tilted his head, the non sequitur confusing him. "About Daiyu Mei... Tani told me, what she said when she took Danny... that she had..."

"The person I care about most in the world." He said the words, hearing Daiyu Mei say them in his head, his stomach flipping just like it had when it had actually happened. And, like a scene from his nightmares, Noelani's face seemed to shimmer and he saw it as he saw it just before he woke up from a sweat drenched dream, swollen and bloodied, eyes filled with pain, tears streaming down her cheeks. 

He'd always known Daiyu Mei could target the people he loved. He took no pleasure in being right. 

"I'm sorry I hurt you," he said, because he wasn't sure if he'd said that already, knew he needed to before he left the island. "I never wanted to... but this whole last year... you were my person. The one thing that made sense in my life. I couldn't risk you."

"I know." Noelani's eyes were filled with tears and Steve hated, hated, that he was making her cry. Again. "I always knew, remember? Noble and stupid." 

"That's me." He grinned at that, familiar ground back under his feet with her teasing. "Noble and stupid."

"And leaving."

He sighed again, took a step towards her. "I'll be back, Noelani," he said. 

She opened her mouth to speak but stopped when she heard the same thing that Steve heard, the sound of his front door opening, quiet chatter suddenly stopped. There was a split second of silence, then Lou's command, "Okay, everybody, back it up, into the house right now, let's go, people, move it..." before the door closed again. 

Noelani stared at Steve for a long moment, her lips twitching. "They're watching from the front windows, aren't they?"

Steve didn't need to glance back towards the house but when he did, sure enough, he saw movement at the curtains. "Oh yeah." He looked at her again then, the tension between them broken with the interruption and he felt safe enough to reach out, take her hand in his. 

She let him and he knew, straight away when he felt the touch of her skin on his, that it was a mistake. Because one touch was never going to be enough. 

"I'm sorry," he said again, this time using his other hand to reach up, touch her cheek. Her eyes fluttered shut and she leaned into him, taking a step towards him and closing the gap between them, her eyes dark and huge as she stared up at him. 

After a second, he saw the uncertainty vanish from her eyes and he frowned, not understanding why. Then she spoke. "I know you need to leave," she said. "But... do you have to go alone?" 

It took a second for the words to land and when they did, his jaw dropped. "You can't..." he started and she didn't look discouraged. If anything, her face got even more determined. "Noelani, you have your job here... your family..."

"And you don't?" Her voice raised slightly, she looked back towards the house. When Steve followed her gaze, he noted that the team weren't even trying to hide behind the curtains and considering he was reasonably sure at least one of them could read lips, there were no secrets here, not anymore. "Listen, Steve, if your feelings have changed, if you don't feel the same way, I get that, I do... but you're going to have to look me in the eye and tell me-"

He didn't look her in the eye and tell her that. 

He pulled her close and kissed her instead. 

She froze for a second before responding, her mouth opening under his, her free hand moving up to the back of his neck, fingers tangling in his hair. He slid his hand from her cheek down her back, let it rest on her hip, all the while keeping their other hands joined and, lost in the kiss as he was, he was still sure he could hear the very faint sound of applause. 

They were both out of breath when they parted, Noelani moving first, wrapping her arm around Steve's waist and burying her head in his chest. "That better not have been a goodbye kiss," she sniffed after a second and Steve couldn't help it, he laughed, pulling her closer. 

"Why don't we go get you packed?" he said and her head shot up at that, her eyes bright and happy in a way he hadn't seen for far too long. "I can call the airline from your place... change my flight. And get another ticket." A moment of doubt set in. "If you're sure about this, that is." 

"Steve." She said his name in a tone that brooked no argument. "Drive."


	10. happily ever after

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Noelani come home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt : happily ever after

Honolulu hadn’t changed much in a year, Steve decided as he pulled into park, the familiar scent of Kamekona’s shrimp truck coming wafting through the open window from quite some distance away. As he turned off the engine, Eddie leaned forward from his perch in the back where he’d grudgingly stayed as the car had been in motion, taking the opportunity to lick Steve’s cheek. As the dog pushed his way through, Danny snorted with disgust. “Well I see a year away has not improved your driving skills, Steven; I can’t believe I forgot what a maniac you are.” 

“The year hasn’t changed your sunny disposition either, I see.” Steve smirked as he got out of the car, extending a hand to help Noelani out of the back seat. Eddie jumped out after her, staying close beside Steve, tail wagging so quickly that Steve could barely see it. “You okay?” Steve asked Noelani, looking down at her as he laced their fingers together. She’d been quiet in the car on the way from the airport, but that could be because Steve and Danny had settled into old habits remarkably quickly. 

In answer, she closed her eyes and tilted her head back, shaking her hair loose around her shoulders. She took a deep breath before she opened her eyes which gave him a few seconds to once again admire how beautiful she was - it had been one of his favourite hobbies this past year. “Much better now,” she said, smiling up at him. 

“Ready to get this show on the road?” Danny was uncharacteristically quiet and when Steve glanced at him, he could see why. It was because he was talking to Noelani. 

Noelani glanced at them both and nodded. “Let’s go.” 

They could see the gang already seated around one of the tables as they made their way across the grass. “Hey, look who I found,” Danny called out when they were a few feet away, and all heads turned in his direction. 

That was roughly when all hell broke loose.

There were exclamations and hugs and kisses and handshakes, everyone talking at once and, when the dust settled, Tani’s voice was the first one he heard clearly. “Why didn’t you tell us you were coming home?” 

Jerry lifted one eyebrow. “Wow, you really don’t like surprises, do you?” 

She shot him a glare as everyone laughed. “We might have missed the engagement party,” Steve said, looking pointedly at the ring on Tani’s left hand, grinning at Junior, who managed to look embarrassed and proud all at once. “But we were afraid if we left it too close to the wedding, we’d steal your thunder.” He wasn’t exaggerating either; that had been one of Noelani’s concerns. 

“You wouldn’t be stealing our thunder.” Tani was reaching out, pulling Noelani into another hug. “We would gladly share it.” 

“Hey, McGarrett! Welcome home, brah.” Kamekona made his way over, shaking Steve’s hand and pulling him into a hug. “Sista.” He hugged Noelani too, the height difference making Steve smile. “For you, today, you get the special discount.” 

“What’s that?” Danny asked. “Five percent off?” 

“Nah, brah.” Kamekona looked affronted. “Ten for Five-0. You two?” He motioned to Steve and Noelani. “On the house.” 

In all the years he’d been coming here, Steve had heard those words exactly once and the group were silent for a long moment. Then the conversation started off again, everyone asking questions over each other, Steve and Noelani answering as best they could. Photographs of his niece were a big hit, as were photos of Chin, Abby and Sarah. He was a bit concerned about how Adam might take hearing about Kono, but something about the way that the other man was looking at Quinn made him think that maybe there was something he’d missed during his year away. There was plenty of food, plenty of laughter and it was only when Noelani began leaning into him a little bit more that Steve met Danny’s eyes, tilted his head towards the car. “We should get going,” he said, a statement that was met by a predictable chorus of disapproval. “I know, I know.” He held his hands up. “But we’ve had a long day.” He glanced over at Noelani, squeezed her hand tighter. “And Noelani’s about a half hour away from total collapse.” 

“It’s true.” Noelani’s smile was more than a little self-deprecating. “Some of us can’t sleep on airplanes.” It was a carryover from Steve’s SEAL training that he could pretty much sleep anywhere, a talent of which Noelani was insanely jealous. 

“We’ll catch up tomorrow,” Steve promised and there were more hugs and welcome homes before they could walk away. As they walked, Steve’s arm settled around Noelani’s shoulders and she pressed herself close against him, Eddie at her other side, Danny on the other side of Steve, still talking away and, not for the first time, Steve let himself think about how much he’d missed this. 

His house didn’t look any different than when he’d left it. In fact, he realised as he looked around, it looked more or less exactly the same. He tilted his head and looked at Danny. “Where are you staying tonight?” Because as far as he knew, Danny and Junior had both been living here. 

He knew he was missing something when Danny shifted on his feet and pulled his ear. “Yeah, so, Junior’s been pretty much living with Tani since they made their big announcement... and I... well, I’ve been spending a lot of my nights... in Rachel’s house.” 

Steve felt his jaw drop and his eyebrows climb. A glance at Noelani confirmed he hadn’t been hearing things, because she also looked surprised. She, however, was smiling. “Rachel’s house?” Steve said, blinking rapidly and crossing his arms over his chest. 

“Yeah.” Danny rocked backwards and forwards on his heels. “So, I’m going to head back there. I’ll see you guys tomorrow.” 

Before he could take a step, Noelani spoke up. “You don’t have to go, Danny.” She was talking to Danny but she stood beside Steve, laying a hand on his arm. When both men looked at her, she glanced over her shoulder, out into the back yard and the beach beyond. “I’m going to go unpack, get settled in. Why don’t you two grab a beer?” 

Steve felt a grin break over his face and one look at Danny showed that the other man evidently felt the same. He did, however, hold up both hands. “Not on your first night back, I mean, c’mon...”

“I insist.” She squeezed Steve’s arm, but he still protested. 

“Danny’s right. We couldn’t possibly...”

Noelani actually rolled her eyes. “Really?” 

Both men looked at her, then at each other. Then Danny shrugged. “I guess it is pretty early.” 

“And I’m really not tired,” Steve agreed. Another look down at Noelani. “You’re sure you don’t mind?” 

She laughed and shook her head. “You two aren’t fooling anyone.” 

“Okay.” He turned to Danny, motioned to the two bags near the door. “I’ll take those upstairs. Why don’t you grab us a couple beers, I’ll meet you down there?”

Danny did not have to be told twice. 

When the bags were safely upstairs, Noelani stood beside the bed, reaching for the zipper on hers. Steve grabbed her hand, pulling her around to face him. She went easily, almost as if she was expecting it, her hands landing on his shirt, playing with the buttons, while his hands moved up and down her forearms. “Are you sure about this?” he asked. “Because I can send Danny home...” 

There was a knowing little smile playing around her lips. “It’s actually cute that you think I don’t know how much you’ve been looking forward to this since we booked our flights.” Her voice took on a slightly sing song quality. “A beer in your hand, the sound of the ocean as you recline in those chairs, Danny by your side...” 

She was teasing, but it was true. He had been looking forward to that, hadn’t realised how much he’d missed those moments. But still. “It is our first night back here,” he reminded her. 

She only nodded. “We’ll have lots more nights,” she said. “Go. I’ll be right here.” 

He kissed her then, because how could he not, and made to go downstairs. When he got to the door, though, he stopped, turned to look back at her. She was standing beside the bed, her back to him, looking around the room like she was reminding herself what was in it, what used to go where on those occasions that she’d stayed over in another lifetime. “Noelani.” She turned her head at the sound of her name, a smile lighting up her whole face at whatever she saw on his. 

Those were the moments Steve lived for. 

“I love you,” he told her and her laugh was like music. 

“Go.” 

Perhaps not the response would one traditionally desire following a declaration of love, but Steve decided he’d take it. 

Danny hadn’t made too many inroads into his beer by time Steve sat down, clinking the neck of his bottle against Danny’s. He gave himself a moment to look out across the beach, the calm sea, the setting sun, to remind himself just how beautiful this place was. 

“So... you and Rachel.” 

“Yeah.” 

“How’d that happen?” Though in truth, he had a pretty good idea. Though he might have denied it up down and all around, Danny had never really fallen out of love with his ex-wife, 

“I’m... I’m not really sure actually.” Danny picked at the label of his beer bottle. “I guess one day we both looked at each other and realised that the reason we couldn’t make it work with anybody else is because we never really, you know, got over each other.” Steve would not say “I told you so” he decided. “So we figured, we either make a go of it with each other or we die alone, so here we are.” 

It was the most Danny way of describing a reconciliation Steve had ever heard. “How are the kids with it?”

“Grace thinks it’s weird, which I get, I mean, she’s known Rachel and me apart more than she ever knew us together. But she’s in college so she really only has to deal with it when she’s home which is only for holidays because she’s in college and she doesn’t want to come home. Charlie, he thinks it’s great. I’m there for bedtime most nights, because Lincoln doesn’t have your knack for getting me in trouble, I get to take him to school in the mornings... it’s good. It’s good.” 

Steve considered that, considered Danny for a long moment, realising that the man was calmer than he’d probably ever seen him. “That’s great, man,” he said, and he meant it. “I’m happy for you.” 

“Thank you.” Danny looked out at the waves, then back to Steve. “So what about you?” 

“Me?”

“You and Noelani.” Danny had definitely changed, Steve thought. A year ago, his hands would have been waving around the place like he was trying to land an airplane and his tone would have been getting more excitable as he thought Steve was trying to deflect the question. Today, he was actually grinning. “You’ve been gone a year, and not only has she managed to not kill you, but she actually still looks like she wants to be with you, by which I deduce that you’ve managed to not screw this up, good job.” 

By the time he finished that little speech, Steve was actually laughing. “We are good,” he said. “We are very good.” There were still times that he looked at her and couldn’t believe what she’d done, the leap of faith she had taken to literally drop everything in her life and get on a plane with him. He knew, though, that he was never going to stop being grateful for it. He took a deep breath. “We have literally spent almost every waking minute of the last year together and I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat.” 

He was waiting for Danny to make fun of him for that, but the other man only smiled. “So, at the risk of sounding like my own grandma...” When had that ever stopped him, Steve thought, but did not say. “When are you gonna make an honest woman out of her?” 

Steve opened his mouth to reply then stopped, pressed his lips together. “Yeah...” he said eventually, and he could feel his lips twitching, the smile refusing to be kept back. “About that...” 

It took almost a full ten seconds for the penny to drop, then Danny’s jaw dropped right along with it. “No.” 

“Yeah.” Steve was grinning now, he couldn’t help it. He flexed his left hand, drawing Danny’s attention to it, but there was nothing there to see, Noelani having taken his ring and securely hidden it in her purse with hers the second their plane touched down in Honolulu. His hand had felt weird all day, the same way it had those first few days he’d been wearing the ring and he couldn’t believe how quickly he’d got used to it. 

“When? And where? And how could you not tell us?” Danny’s eyes were wide but he didn’t look angry. Stunned, more like. 

“It was very impromptu, very spur of the moment. Me, her, Mary and her boyfriend, Joanie, that was it.” There was a picture he had, not on paper or on his phone, but in his mind’s eye, of Joanie holding Noelani’s hand, the two of them deep in conversation, as they walked across a park to take photos in a bandstand there. He’d loved seeing the bond the two of them had formed so quickly, couldn’t wait for Mary and Joanie to come out and visit so he could see it again. “We didn’t want anything big or over the top... we’re going to have a traditional Hawaiian blessing, probably here, as soon as we can organise it.” A thought occurred to him and he frowned. “Also, as soon as we tell her parents.” 

“Tell her-” Danny looked like he was about to fall out of his beach chair. “Let me get this straight. You have never met these people, yet you take their daughter, their only child, their pride and joy, away from them for a year, with less than a day’s notice. You then proceed to marry her in secret... and you don’t even call them to tell them?” He chuckled as he took a swig of his beer. “They are going to love you, my friend.” 

“Nah.” Steve’s lips were twitching again as he ignored the obvious sarcasm. “We got some other news that’ll soften up the dirt.”

Danny looked at him like he was speaking in tongues. “What news could you possibly give them that would soften up the dirt-” He stopped talking and Steve could see the second that the realisation hit him like a two by four to the back of the head. “Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me right now?” 

“No, Danny.” 

Danny threw up his hands. “Oh that’s it, I’m moving back to Jersey. I’m done.” 

“What do you mean, you’re done?”

“I mean, I spend ten years of my life running around after you trying to keep you from getting yourself, and me also, killed, and now you tell me I’ll have to spend the next eighteen keeping an eye out on your little ninja spawn? My heart can’t take it, my blood pressure cannot take this.” 

“Well, we were hoping you’d stick around, the kid’s gonna need a godfather.”

“Godfather?” Despite the rapid fire banter, Steve was being completely serious when he said that, and Danny must have been able to see that because he went very still. 

“Yeah. Because if anything ever happened to me...” Steve looked over his shoulder, back towards the house. From where he was sitting, he could see the master bedroom window, see the window of the room beside it, currently the guest room but which would soon become the nursery. “There’s no-one else I’d rather have looking out for them.” 

There was a suspicious lump in his throat and when Danny cleared his, Steve rather thought it might be catching. He was half expecting a quip from Danny to lighten the mood, but the other man simply stood, held out his hand. “I’d be honoured.” 

Steve stood, shook his hand and pulled him into a hug. 

“Now,” he said when they were both sitting down again. “How about you fill me in on what I’ve missed?”

One beer turned into two and the sun was beginning to dip down under the horizon by the time Danny stood up and made his farewells. Steve made sure the front door was locked behind him, then walked slowly around the downstairs, checking everything was secure one last time. As he did so, he noticed something was missing and, a suspicion forming in his mind, he made his way upstairs. 

Sure enough, when he reached his bedroom, Noelani was already in bed, the sheets up as far as her waist, wearing a shirt that had once been his but that she'd long since claimed as her own. And lying on the bed with her, where he absolutely was not supposed to be and had never been allowed, was Eddie. 

But what really made him smile was that Eddie had arranged himself in such a position that his head was pillowed on Noelani's stomach. 

"Hey, buddy," Steve said, rubbing the dog's head. "You know you're not allowed up there."

Eddie lifted his head just long enough to give him a beseeching look then returned to his previous position. "I tried to tell him," Noelani said, an amused little smile on her face. "I think he knows," she added, with a glance down at her stomach. 

Part of Steve wanted to say that there was no way that Eddie could know, but he knew better - that dog had surprised him before. Still, there wasn't enough room on the bed for the three of them so he patted the dog again. "C'mon, buddy... couch is downstairs for you." Another baleful look from Eddie, this one accompanied by a whine that had Noelani covering her lips with her hand. "Okay, fine then. End of the bed. C'mon, end of the bed." 

Eddie leaped off the mattress, making himself comfortable on the floor and Noelani stopped trying to hide her giggles. "You're such a pushover."

He didn't touch that one, just toed off his shoes and went to the dresser, taking his wedding ring from the top where she must have left it, and slipping it back on. He’d been feeling pretty good so it surprised him how much better he felt with it on; he'd known his hand felt weird without it, but the sense of rightness was still an eye-opener. "How are my girls?" he asked, as he climbed onto the bed beside her, his hand covering her stomach, his thumb sweeping up and down. 

Noelani, having long since stopped reminding him that it was too early to know if they were having a boy or a girl, deciding that it was easier just to humour him until the first sonogram, smiled as she covered his hand with hers. "We're fine," she said. "Just tired."

"Yeah?" Steve brushed a kiss over her forehead. He'd known she was tired when they were leaving Kamekona's - she might have escaped morning sickness so far, but early pregnancy tiredness was seriously kicking her ass. "You sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Her smile was fond, her hand moving from his to reach up and cup his cheek. "You need to stop worrying."

He hummed a little as he pretended to consider it. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's not going to happen." She laughed quietly in acknowledgement as she relaxed back against the pillows. "I... ah... I told Danny." He said it with a quiet smile of his own and she didn't ask which bit of their news he had shared. She already knew.

"Of course you did." Her hand moved again, covering his over her stomach. "What did he say?"

"He's happy for us," Steve told her. "Although I think he's hoping that she turns out more like her mom." He leaned in and kissed her then, felt her smile against his lips. 

"You never know." Her eyes were dancing with merriment when she pulled away and he frowned. That was the look she usually got on her face right before she released a zinger. Usually at his expense. "She might take after her grandma."

It took a second for the quip to land and when it did, Steve's jaw dropped. "You didn't..." She nodded, still grinning. "You did not just..." He broke off, shook his head. "I need to teach you a lesson, clearly," he said as he started to tickle her, both of them laughing. Which was something, he realised, because if someone had told him a year ago that he'd be able to laugh at the memory of Doris, not ache, he would never have believed them. 

A bark from Eddie put paid to their merriment, Steve breaking away from Noelani to look over his shoulder at him, seeing the dog looking at him with what could only be described as a frown on his face. There was a minor growl from the back of Eddie's throat and Steve, figuring out what the dog thought, held up one hand. "I'm not hurting her, buddy... she's fine." 

Satisfied, Eddie lay back down. Noelani, on the other hand, couldn't stop giggling. It might have been the situation, it might have been the tickles but Steve rather thought it had more to do with the kind of hysteria brought on by tiredness. "You should get some sleep," Steve told her, standing up and making short work of his shirt and trousers, breaking the habit of a lifetime by dropping them both on the floor before climbing into bed. Once wouldn't hurt, he told himself. 

Besides, who wanted to fold and put away clothes when his wife was there, all ready to curl up in his arms, her head on his shoulder, his chin resting against her forehead. He brushed a kiss over the top of her head, whispered, "Good night, Noelani," but only got a sleepy mumble in return, and he thought she might have been asleep before she finished whatever the words were. 

There was a yip from the floor and Steve smiled into the darkness. "Night, Eddie," he said. The rhythmic sound of the dog's tail sweeping across the floor as he wagged it joined with the other familiar sounds of the house settling down for the night, mixing with the lap of waves carried on the cool breeze coming in through the open window. Noelani was warm against him, her stomach under his palm rising and falling with each breath she took and Steve closed his eyes, matching his breathing to hers until he fell asleep, finally and totally at peace.


End file.
